Prophecy is meant to work in such a way that it is fully understood only after the events prophesied have already taken place. This confirms for us that what YHWH declares will happen truly will happen. Prophecy can be used to anticipate future events, but only in a vague or partial sense. This particular prophecy is almost entirely in our past; therefore, we should be able to understand the meaning of the majority of it, yet there is no consensus among scholars as to its interpretation. The fact that it is still confusing, despite being about events in our past, tells us at least two things. One, that the way it’s translated may not be completely accurate; and two, that scholars may be looking in the wrong place in history.
The Masoretic Text, which is the source document for almost all English Bible translations, was translated from the Greek Septuagint into Hebrew in AD 750-950 by the Masoretes of Tiberias, in Galilee. The Greek Septuagint is centuries older than the Hebrew Masoretic Text, and is very likely the translation of scripture that Yeshua and the Apostles used in the first century. Since the second half of this prophecy in the English translations of Hebrew are unclear, we’re going to use the English translation of the Greek Septuagint for the remainder of the Book of Daniel; specifically, the Third Revised Edition of the translation by Lancelot C. Brenton.
In part one, we had left off at the end of the story of Antiochus Epiphanes, who was the last Seleucid emperor of the Kings of the North and South saga. It was at this time in history that the people of Judea revolted against the Seleucid Empire (the Maccabean Revolt), and the Jews enjoyed 130 years of independence under the Hasmonean Dynasty.
In the chart below there are four columns showing the succession of leaders in the four nations relevant to this prophecy: Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, Roman Republic/Empire, and Judea. The leaders of the Roman Republic at the top of the chart aren’t included, because they aren’t relevant. The orange lines show the marriage between the final Ptolemaic monarch, Cleopatra VII, to both Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.
This prophecy was given to Daniel to show the effect the warring rulers of the north and south would have on his people as they were ruled over by them; therefore, during the time period that Judea was ruled by the Jewish Hasmonean Dynasty, there is no King of the North/South narrative.
So, let’s zoom up on the bottom section of the chart and focus on the time period after the dissolution of the Hasmonean Dynasty, when Rome began to rule Judea.
Logically, in order to know if prophecy has been fulfilled in history, we need to know history. So, bare with me for a bit of a history lesson and we’ll identify how Daniel 11:25-28 is an account of how Gaius Octavius, using intelligence and intrigue, amassed great political power and wealth and turned the Roman Republic into an Empire.
In 44 BC, the assassination of Julius Caesar threw the Roman Republic into civil war. Three strong Roman generals, and allies of Caesar, formed the Second Triumvirate to defeat his assassins. The three men were Gaius Octavius, Mark Antony, and Marcus Lepidus. Octavius would become the King of the North, and Antony, the King of the South—but first…intrigue and betrayal.
Julius Caesar had named Gaius Octavius as his heir, which meant Octavius inherited his name, estate, and the loyalty of his legions. When Mark Antony attempted to assume the strategically important provinces of Transalpine and Cisalpine Gaul from their existing governors, the Roman Senate turned to Octavius for assistance. Octavius led 34 legions against Antony’s 11 legions in the War of Mutina, the result was a resounding victory for Octavius, at which point he turned on the Roman Senate and marched on Rome!
Octavius took control of Rome and forced the Senate to pass legislation that convicted Caesar’s assassins, then he began secret negotiations with Mark Antony. The two men reconciled and, along with Lepidus, they formed the Second Triumvirate, which was a five-year three-man dictatorship controlling the Republic, for the purpose of killing the assassins.
They divided up control of the provinces between themselves; while jointly governing the Italian Peninsula,
- Octavius took Africa,
- Lepidus took Spain, and
- Antony took Gaul,
Caesar’s assassins controlled the Eastern Mediterranean and Mediterranean islands.
The first order of business for the Triumvirate was the 43 BC proscriptions against their enemies in Rome. They seized—for the state—the wealth and property of the proscribed, stripped them of citizenship, and made them outlaws. Two thousand of the equite class and one third of the senate were executed. The proscriptions, along with new taxes on the wealthy, were to replenish the state treasury that had been depleted by Caesar’s civil war ten years earlier.
In 42 BC, Octavius and Antony took 19 legions to Macedonia, leaving Lepidus behind to manage Rome. The Battle of Philipi resulted in the assassins committing suicide, and the Triumvirate controlling all of the Roman Republic except Sicily, which remained under the governorship of Sextus Pompey.
The way the republic was divided among the three men changed after they defeated the assassins.
- Mark Antony ruled all of the Eastern provinces, plus Gaul in the West,
- Octavius took Spain, and
- Lepidus was given Africa.
So, how does Cleopatra VII fit into the story? She had a son with Julius Caesar in 47 BC, and they lived in Rome until Caesar’s death. Now, in 42 BC, she travelled to Tarsus by ship and invited Mark Antony on board for a magnificent banquet to cement their alliance. Mark Antony needed the help of her army to fight the Parthians in the East, and Antony granted her formal control over the island of Cyprus.
While Antony was in the East securing the alliance of Rome’s client kingdoms, reorganizing his troops, and raising money for his coming war with Parthia, Octavius began spreading propaganda against him in Rome. He also divorced Claudia, who was the daughter of Mark Antony’s wife, Fulvia, with her first husband. Fulvia rallied Lucius Antonius, Mark Antony’s brother, to her aid, and together they raised an army to confront Octavius; however, in 40 BC, they were forced to surrender. Octavius, had Fulvia exiled to Sicyon and three hundred Roman senators and equestrians executed for siding with Lucius, while Lucius and his army were spared because of his relationship with Antony.
In response, Mark Antony left Cleopatra in Egypt and sailed to Rome with a large force and laid siege to Brundisium. However, the centurions and legions under Antony’s and Octavius’ command refused to fight, which gave the two the opportunity to effect a reconciliation.
In the fall of that year, they signed the Treaty of Brundisium, which kept Lepidus in Aftrica, Antony in the East, and Octavius in the West. To solidify the treaty, Antony married Octavius’ sister, Octavia Minor.
Also, the two made an agreement that Antony would provide 120 ships for Octavius to use against Sextus Pompey, in the Battle of Naulochus, and Octavius would send 20,000 legionaries for Antony’s war against Parthia. Antony upheld his side of the deal, but Octavius sent only a tenth of what he had promised.
Octavius and Lepidus defeated Sextus Pompey, in 36 BC. Octavius would not allow Lepidus to keep Sicily for himself, but instead used the situation as an excuse to accuse Lepidus of attempting to usurp power and start a rebellion. Lepidus’ legions defected to Octavius and he was forced to submit to Octavius, and he was stripped of all his offices except that of pontifex maximus.
Meanwhile, Antony’s war against Parthia was not going well. He needed the armies of his lover, Cleopatra, to replenish his forces, so he sent Octavia back to Rome. Antony and Cleopatra had three children together between 40 and 36 BC.
Octavius was amassing power and wealth while spreading propaganda in order to alienate Antony from his Roman supporters. Octavius:
- implied that Antony was becoming less Roman because he rejected his Roman wife, Octavia, in favor of his non-Roman lover Cleopatra.
- announced that he would step down as triumvir, if Antony would do the same, knowing Antony would refuse, which made Antony look like the villain and Octavius the hero.
- convinced the Senate that Antony had ambitions to diminish the preeminence of Rome when Antony gave Cleopatra the title “Queen of Kings”.
- opened the 33 BC session in the Senate with an attack on Antony for granting titles and territories to his relatives and to his queen.
Now, many senators and both of the consuls left Rome that year, in support of Antony, because of Octavius’ actions. However, late the following year, two of them returned to Octavius with intel that he needed to convince the Senate that all of his accusations against Antony had been true. He stole Antony’s secret will from the temple of the Vestal Virgins and immediately made it public. Antony’s will gave Roman-conquered territories to his sons and designated Alexandria, Egypt as the site for a tomb for him and his queen, Cleopatra.
At the end of 32 BC, the Senate officially revoked Antony’s powers as consul and declared war on Cleopatra’s regime in Egypt. The climax of the war was the Battle of Actium in the Ionian Sea, on September 2, 31 BC; one of the ten largest naval battles in history. Octavius had a force of 400 ships and 80,000 infantry. Antony and Cleopatra had a force of 500 ships and 70,000 infantry.
We read about this drama unfolding in Daniel 11:25-28. Octavius, with the Senate’ support, is the King of the North; and Antony, with Cleopatra’s support, is the King of the South. The passage as a whole is a description of the events that took place over more than a decade between the two powerful Roman generals.
Daniel 11:25 And his strength and his heart shall be stirred up against the king of the south with a great force; and the king of the south shall engage in war with a great and very strong force; but his forces shall not stand, for they shall devise plans against him: (Septuagint)
This is an apt description of the size of the armies on both sides of this conflict. Before the naval battle started, one of Mark Antony’s generals defected to Octavius, providing him with Antony’s battle plans. Then, after the naval battle, 19 legions and 12,000 cavalry deserted Antony and joined Octavius before a land battle had even begun.
Daniel 11:26-27 and they shall eat his provisions, and shall crush him, and he shall carry away armies as with a flood, and many shall fall down slain. And as for both the kings, their hearts are set upon mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper; for yet the end is for a fixed time. (Septuagint)
Both Octavius and Antony had been speaking false about others, lying and spreading propaganda throughout the decade leading up to the battle. Octavius had a clear plan to usurp the power of the Republic and become its sole ruler, a plan that came to fruition soon after his victory over Mark Antony, as he was given the titles of “First Citizen” and “Augustus” by the Senate and became the first Roman Emperor.
The casualties and losses of the Battle of Actium were over 5000 of Antony’s and Cleopatra’s men killed and 250 of their ships sunk; and on the other side, about 2500 of Octavius’ men were killed. In the end, both Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide.
Daniel 11:28 And he shall return to his land with much substance; and his heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall perform great deeds, and return to his own land. (Septuagint)
From Wikipedia we read about the financial benefits the conquest of Egypt brought to Rome, and the extreme wealth of Octavius:
…the conquest of Ptolemaic Egypt relieved the financial debts incurred by Octavian. He controlled Roman Egypt directly, forbade Roman Senators to travel there, and appointed an equestrian governor to supervise its administration and enormously lucrative taxation.
To a large extent, the public was aware of the vast financial resources that Octavian commanded. He failed to encourage enough senators to finance the building and maintenance of networks of roads in Italy in 20 BC, but he undertook direct responsibility for them. This was publicized on the Roman currency issued in 16 BC, after he donated vast amounts of money to the aerarium Saturni, the public treasury.
The successor to Octavius and second emperor of Rome, Tiberius, was very good at investing money and increased the Roman coffers exponentially as well.
However, the third emperor, Caligula, was an insane tyrant who “set his heart against the Holy Covenant” by trying to put a statue of himself in the temple at Jerusalem, as described in Wikipedia:
Under Emperor Caligula’s reign (37–41 CE), imperial policy in Judaea briefly broke with earlier, more tolerant practice: his efforts to impose the imperial cult provoked crises and helped fuel anti-Jewish sentiment, leading to violent outbreaks in Alexandria, Egypt, in 38 CE. Tensions further escalated following a dispute at Yavneh (Jamnia), where the Jewish community dismantled a pagan altar. In response, Caligula ordered a statue of himself to be placed in the Temple, provoking widespread outrage. His death averted open conflict, but the episode further deepened Jewish resentment toward Roman rule.
Daniel 11:29-30 At the set time he shall return, and shall come into the south, but the last expeditions shall not be as the first. For the Citians issuing forth shall come against him, and he shall be brought low, and shall return, and shall be incensed against the holy covenant: and he shall do thus, and return, and have intelligence with them that have forsaken the holy covenant. (Septuagint)
At this point, the King of the North is still active, but the King of the South has disappeared from the picture for a time. This verse is during what we call the Apostolic Age (AD 33-100). The Apostolic Age is the time period covered by the letter to the Church of Ephesus, in the Book of Revelation.
The king returns at a set time and comes into “the south”. The word “south” in Hebrew is Strong’s h5045 נֶגֶב negeb: from an unused root meaning to be parched; the south (from its drought); specifically, the Negeb or southern district of Judah, occasionally, Egypt (as south to Palestine):—south (country, side, -ward). In this passage, we believe the word is meant to represent Judah, and verse 29 is saying that the expeditions to Judah by Vespasian, after AD 66, will not go as the expeditions under the previous emperors had, before AD 66.
We read about the first expedition that did not go well on Wikipedia:
Gallus was proconsul of Syria from 63 to 65. He marched into Judea with a force of over 30,000 men in September 66 in an attempt to restore order at the outset of the First Jewish-Roman War.
With his force reduced by detachments sent to occupy Galilee and the Judean coast, Gallus turned inland to subdue Jerusalem. After suffering losses amongst his baggage train and rearguard, Gallus reached Mount Scopus and penetrated the outer city, but was unable to take the Temple Mount. After a siege of nine days, Gallus decided to fall back to the coast. His decision appears to have been based on the loss of siege equipment by ambush and the threatened cutting of his supply lines as the October rains began.
The war-like faction in Jerusalem, under Shimon bar Giora, rose up against the Roman contingent, pursuing them as far as Antipatris, via Beit Horon.
Josephus initially estimated the number of Roman losses at 515, but in the ensuing rout, the dead among the Imperial Roman army numbered 5300 infantrymen and 380 cavalrymen. This incident befell the Roman army in the lunar month of Heshvan, during the 12th year of the reign of Nero, and marked the beginning of the war with Rome.
Soon after his return to Syria, and before the spring of 67, Gallus died. According to Titus Flavius Josephus the legate was broken by shame at a major and unexpected Roman defeat.
Emperor Nero appointed the future Emperor Vespasian as commander of the Roman forces assembled in the province to crush the rebellion in Judea.
In the Hebrew Masoretic text there is a word usually translated as “ships” added to the text, which reads “For the ships of Chittim will come against him.”
The word is the plural of Strong’s h6716, צִיים tsee-im, and according to the Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon, the first definition is dryness, a dry region, a desert, and the second is a ship. However, ship(s) is in relation to it being a dry place in the midst of the waters, which could even be an island(s).
The word “ships” later in verse 41 is Strong’s h591. Why would the Masoretes use two different words in the same chapter if they were both meant to mean the same thing? It is possible that they did, but it is more probable that this word in verse 30 was not meant to mean “ships”, especially given that the word “ships” doesn’t exist in the older Greek Septuagint. It seems most probable that the Masoretes were not adding to the text, but rather intended for צִיים to mean something other than “ships”.
Let’s look at the name “Citians”, this is the same as the plural of the Hebrew word Strong’s h3794 כִּתִּי kit-tee. The definition from the Strong’s concordance is: patrial from an unused name denoting Cyprus (only in the plural); a Kittite or Cypriote; hence, an islander in general, i.e. the Greeks or Romans on the shores opposite Palestine:—Chittim, Kittim.
According to the Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon the definition can be Cyprians, but also in a wider signification the name comprehended the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean sea in general, especially the Northern, Greece, and the islands and shores of the Aegean sea. The truth, with regard to this twofold signification, was seen by Josephus, and by Epiphanius, a bishop of Cyprus, born in Palestine, and not unacquainted with Hebrew. The Vulgate translates it by “Italia” apparently because of the passage in Daniel.
The “Citians” are the armies of the Roman Empire that were fighting one another during the civil war called the “Year of Four Emperors”. This war began during the reign of Nero, and is the reason for his suicide. Galba succeeded Nero, as it was his supporters who started the rebellion. Otho had Galba killed after only 7 months and then became emperor in his place, but he committed suicide after only 4 months when his army lost 40,000 men to Vitellius. Vitellius became emperor and lasted until the end of AD 69, when he was executed in Rome by Vespasian’s soldiers. The Senate named Vespasian emperor on December 21, 69.
From Wikipedia, we read about the First Jewish-Roman War:
In 64, Gessius Florus became governor [of Judea], securing the position through his wife, who was a friend of Poppaea Sabina, the wife of Emperor Nero. His ties to the imperial family gave him considerable freedom in governance. The Roman historian Tacitus described him as unfit for office, while Josephus—a Jewish commander who became a historian after his capture by the Romans—portrayed him as a ruthless official who plundered the region and imposed harsh punishments. The worsening situation under Florus led many to flee the region.
Florus’s governorship is described by ancient sources as the tipping point that sparked the revolt. Tacitus attributed the war to Roman misgovernance rather than Jewish rebelliousness; he noted that Jews showed restraint under harsh governors but lost patience due to Florus’ actions. Similarly, Josephus wrote that the Jews preferred to die in battle rather than endure prolonged suffering under Florus’ governance.
In 66 AD, under Nero, unrest flared when a local Greek sacrificed a bird at the entrance of a Caesarea synagogue. Tensions escalated as Governor Gessius Florus looted the temple treasury and massacred Jerusalem’s residents, sparking an uprising in which rebels killed the Roman garrison while pro-Roman officials fled.
To quell the unrest, Cestius Gallus, the governor of Syria, invaded Judaea but was defeated at Bethoron and a provisional government, led by Ananus ben Ananus, was established in Jerusalem. In 67 CE, Vespasian was sent to suppress the revolt, invading Galilee and capturing Yodfat, Tarichaea, and Gamla. As rebels and refugees fled to Jerusalem, the government was overthrown, leading to infighting between Eleazar ben Simon, John of Gischala and Simon bar Giora. After Vespasian subdued most of the province, Nero’s death prompted him to depart for Rome to claim the throne. His son Titus led the siege of Jerusalem, which fell in the summer of 70 AD, resulting in the Temple’s destruction and the city’s razing. In 71, Titus and Vespasian celebrated a triumph in Rome, and Legio X Fretensis remained in Judaea to suppress the last pockets of resistance, culminating in the fall of Masada in 73/74 CE.
Also from Wikipedia, we read more about Emperor Vespasian:
In 66 AD, Vespasian was appointed to suppress the Jewish revolt underway in Judea. The fighting there had killed the previous governor and routed Cestius Gallus, the governor of Syria, when he tried to restore order. Two legions, with eight cavalry squadrons and ten auxiliary cohorts, were therefore dispatched under the command of Vespasian while his elder son, Titus, arrived from Alexandria with another.
During this time he became the patron of Flavius Josephus, a Jewish resistance leader captured at the Siege of Yodfat, who would later write his people’s history in Greek. Ultimately, thousands of Jews were killed and the Romans destroyed many towns in re-establishing control over Judea; they also took Jerusalem in 70. Vespasian is remembered by Josephus (writing as a Roman citizen), in his Antiquities of the Jews, as a fair and humane official, in contrast with the notorious Herod Agrippa II whom Josephus goes to great lengths to demonize.
While under the emperor’s patronage, Josephus wrote that after the Roman Legio X Fretensis, accompanied by Vespasian, destroyed Jericho on 21 June 68, Vespasian took a group of Jews who could not swim (possibly Essenes from Qumran), fettered them, and threw them into the Dead Sea to test the sea’s legendary buoyancy. Indeed, the captives bobbed up to the surface after being thrown in the water from the boats.
At the conclusion of the Jewish war, Josephus discussed a prophecy from sacred scripture that about the time when Jerusalem and the Second Temple would be taken, a man from their own nation would become “governor of the habitable earth”, as in the Messiah. Josephus interpreted the prophecy as denoting the government of Vespasian. Tacitus agreed that the prophecy discussed Vespasian (as well as Titus), but that “the common people, with the usual blindness of ambition, had interpreted these mighty destinies of themselves, and could not be brought even by disasters to believe the truth.
The “have intelligence with them that have forsaken the holy covenant” is in reference to Josephus.
Daniel 11:31 And seeds shall spring up out of him, and they shall profane the sanctuary of strength and they shall remove the perpetual sacrifice, and make the abomination desolate. (Septuagint)
The “seeds that spring up out of him” are the Roman legions that attacked Judea and ultimately destroyed the temple and the city of Jerusalem. The total destruction of the temple put a permanent halt to all sacrifices. We read about the invasion in Wikipedea:
In winter 69/70, Titus arrived from Alexandria and made Caesarea his main base. His forces included several legions, including V Macedonica, X Fretensis, and XV Apollinaris, along with XII Fulminata, which had suffered defeat in 66 CE. […] Additional troops came from detachments of the Legio III Cyrenaica and the Legio XXII Deiotariana from Egypt, twenty infantry cohortes, eight cavalry alae, Syrian irregulars, and auxiliaries supplied by allied vassal kings. According to Tacitus, “a strong force of Arabs”, driven by longstanding enmity toward the Jews, also joined the campaign. This combined force, estimated at a minimum of 48,200 soldiers, was significantly larger than the one deployed for the invasion of Britain in 43 CE.
Yeshua Messiah warned that when the people in Jerusalem see the Abomination of Desolation they are to flee the city.
Matthew 24:15-21 So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.
The abomination of desolation was the martyrdom of Yeshua’s brother, James, from the pinnacle of the temple. We cover this also in our study The 70 Weeks of Daniel. The event was described for us in the writings of Eusebius of Caesarea:
There are several historical accounts of the Christians leaving Jerusalem before the flood of Roman soldiers came. We find one in the writing of Eusebius:
The Abomination of Desolation was historically understood to be the martyrdom of James, the brother of Yeshua; and based on eyewitness accounts many Christians fled to Pella, across the Jordan River from the province of Judea. All of Judea, including Jerusalem and the temple, was violently destroyed by the Roman armies and by the civil war between various Jewish factions, so there was no safe place within Judea for the Christians to hide.
Daniel 11:32 And the transgressors shall bring about a covenant by deceitful ways: but a people knowing their God shall prevail, and do valiantly. (Septuagint)
From the above writing of Eusebius, we read who the transgressors were and what the “covenant by deceitful ways” was, here is a close up of that passage:
The Jews were the transgressors who brought about a covenant by deceitful ways, but the Apostles of Messiah prevailed by spreading the Gospel to all nations.
Daniel 11:33 And the intelligent of the people shall understand much: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, and by captivity, and by spoil of many days. (Septuagint)
This verse describes the persecution of the church by the Roman emperors, during what we call the Roman Age (AD 100-325). This is the time period covered by the letter to the Church of Smyrna in the Book of Revelation.
Revelation 2:8-11 And to the angel of the church of Smyrna, write: These things says the First and the Last, who became dead, and lived: I know your works, and the affliction, and the poverty; but you are rich. And I know the evil speaking of those saying themselves to be Jews, and they are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not at all fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the Devil is about to throw you into prison, so that you may be tried; and you will have affliction ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. The one who has an ear, hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one overcoming will not at all be hurt by the second death.
The body of believers in the second century endured great tribulation at the hands of the Roman emperors. Sometimes they were given mock trials before being either thrown into prison or put to death. In the middle of the second century, Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna, was martyred by being burned at the stake (by flame), but when the flames failed to touch him he was stabbed by an executioners knife (by the sword). Polycarp, who was a student of the Apostle John (author of Revelation) and likely the last living person to have known an apostle personally, refused to acknowledge the Roman emperor as lord and forsake Yeshua Messiah.
Daniel 11:34-35 And when they are weak they shall be helped with a little help: but many shall attach themselves to them with treachery. And some of them that understand shall fall, to try them as with fire, and to test them, and that they may be manifested at the time of the end, for the matter is yet for a set time. (Septuagint)
These two verses describe the time period after Emperor Constantine makes Christianity the religion of the empire, this is the “with a little help“. We call this the Byzantine Age (AD 325-754), and it is covered by the letter to the Church of Pergamos.
Revelation 2:12-17 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos, write: These things says the One having the sharp, two-edged sword: I know your works, and where you dwell, where the throne of Satan is. And you hold My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful witness; who was killed alongside you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you, that you have there those holding the teachings of Balaam, who taught Balak to throw a stumbling-block before the sons of Israel, to eat idol-sacrifices, and to commit fornication. So you also have those holding the teaching of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent! But if not, I will come to you quickly, and I will make war with them by the sword of My mouth. The one who has an ear, hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one overcoming, I will give him to eat from the hidden manna. And I will give to him a white stone, and on the stone a new name having been written, which no one knows except the one receiving it.
Those holding the teachings of Balaam and the Nicolaitans are the “many [who] shall attach themselves to them with treachery“, and is a description of Emperor Constantine and the leadership of the church blending the practices and beliefs of the pagans with Christianity. And “some of them that understand shall fall” are the many martyrs who were killed by the Roman Empire, for their faith in Yeshua Messiah. These will be part of the first resurrection and will reign with Yeshua for a thousand years.
Revelation 20:4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
Satan gave his power and authority to the beast—the Roman Empire—and that is why Yeshua says this is where Satan’s throne is.
Revelation 13:4-8 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?” And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.
We read another prophecy of this in the Parable of the Unrighteous Judge. The unrighteous judge (Satan) was guilty of allowing maltreatment of the widow (the Church) up until Emperor Constantine in the fourth century, but the widow (the Church) could not be destroyed. The unrighteous judge (Satan) then switched tactics and brought the widow in under its protection, giving her a new home and new leadership (the Roman Empire). The unrighteous judge (Satan) deceived the widow (the Church) into false beliefs to ensure she would not be able to subdue him when the end times come.
Verses 36 to 38 describe the time period we call the Papal Age (AD 754-1517), which is covered by the letter to the Church of Thyatira.
Revelation 2:18-29 And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These things says the Son of God, the One having His eyes as a flame of fire, and His feet like burnished metal: I know your works, and the love, and the ministry, and the faith and your patience, and your works; and the last more that the first. But I have a few things against you, that you allow the woman Jezebel to teach, she saying herself to be a prophetess, and to cause My slaves to go astray, and to commit fornication, and to eat idol-sacrifices. And I gave time for her that she might repent of her fornication. And she did not repent. Behold, I am throwing her into a bed and those committing adultery with her into great affliction, unless they repent of their works. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches will know that I am the One searching the inner parts and hearts. And I will give to each of you according to your works. But I say to you and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this teaching, and who did not know the deep things of Satan, as they say: I am not casting another burden on you; but what you have, hold until I shall come. And the one overcoming, and the one keeping My words until the end I will give to him authority over the nations and he will shepherd them with an iron staff—they are broken to pieces like clay vessels—as I also have received from My Father. And I will give to him the morning star. The one who has an ear, hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
The woman Jezebel is the prostitute from Revelation 17, which is the Roman Church.
Revelation 17:1-2 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”
The Bishop of Rome became the head of the Roman Church, which was the new Roman Empire, and therefore he is the new king of the north.
Daniel 11:36 And he shall do according to his will, and the king shall exalt and magnify himself against every god, and shall speak great swelling words, and shall prosper until the indignation shall be accomplished; for it is coming to an end. (Septuagint)
The pope does according to his own will, instead of obeying the will of YHWH. He makes great blasphemous claims against YHWH, claiming the authority to change YHWH’s times and laws, and to be the replacement for Yeshua Messiah on earth, and to be exalted above all other men.
“The Pope is of great authority and power, that he is able to modify, declare, or interpret even divine laws. The Pope can modify divine law, since his power is not of man, but of God, and he acts as viceregent of God upon earth…” —Article titled Concerning the Extent of Papal Dignity, Authority, or Dominion and Infallibility, by Lucius Ferraris, Prompta Bibliotheca Canonica, Juridica, Moralis, Theologica, Ascetica, Polemica, Rubristica, Historica, VolumeV, Published by J.P. Migne, Petit-Montrouge, Paris, 1858 Edition.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, because that Day will not come unless first comes the falling away, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, the one opposing and exalting himself over everything being called God, or object of worship, so as for him to sit in the temple of God as God, showing himself that he is a god.
Ever since the first Pentecost after the crucifixion, when the Holy Spirit came down to earth and entered the believers, we have become the temple of God.
1 Corinthians 3:16-17 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.
The pope set himself up in the temple of God by claiming that he has the power and authority of God, that he is the replacement for Christ in the world. There are some that argue that if a person allowed the Man of Lawlessness (Sin) to be set up in their heart, they would no longer be the temple of God, however, that same argument can be made for a temple of stone, so it is a moot argument.
The falling away, or apostasy, that Paul talks about in 2 Thessalonians began early in church history as the leadership started teaching against following the Torah—it is the falling away from obedience to YHWH. The Bishop of Rome was at the center of this process throughout the past almost two thousand years.
The word translated “worship” means: to kiss, (like a dog licking his master’s hand); to fawn or crouch to, i.e. (literally or figuratively) prostrate oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore):—worship. The Roman Church teaches worship of the pope through bowing to him, kissing his hand (or the supposed ring of Peter on his hand, which is idolatry), adoring him, and revering him. They have placed the pope in a position above everyone else on earth.
Through ancient paintings we can see that the papacy was worshipped within the church and throughout Western Europe. Charlemagne was crowned the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Leo III. This was a tradition that continued throughout most of the thousand year lifespan of that empire. We also see paintings that depict the pope in positions above the other bishops, and often in ways that indicate others are bowing down to him. In modern times as well, we see many photos that show the people giving reverence to the Pope.
The coronation of the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 800 wearing royal blue. The bishops and cardinals wear Tyrian purple, and the Pope wears white.
Pope Pius IX at the First Vatican Council.
St Catherine before the Pope at Avignon.
Decretals of Pope Boniface VIII.
Benedict XVI Delivers A Christmas Blessing.
Pope Francis.
The Roman Church teaches that the pastoral office held by the apostles, as a group or “college” with Saint Peter as their head, is now held by the bishops who are their successors. The bishop of Rome (the pope) is the head of this college. This is where another of the titles by which the pope is known originates, that of “supreme pontiff”. This title has its origin in the pagan cults of the Roman Republic/Empire.
The status and authority of the pope in the Roman Church was dogmatically defined by the First Vatican Council on 18 July 1870, in its Dogmatic Constitution of the Church of Christ:
If anyone thus speaks, that the Roman pontiff has only the office of inspection or direction, but not the full and supreme power of jurisdiction over the universal Church, not only in things which pertain to faith and morals, but also in those which pertain to the discipline and government of the Church spread over the whole world; or, that he possesses only the more important parts, but not the whole plenitude of this supreme power; or that this power of his is not ordinary and immediate, or over the churches altogether and individually, and over the pastors and the faithful altogether and individually: let him be anathema.
We, adhering faithfully to the tradition received from the beginning of the Christian faith, to the glory of God, our Saviour, the elevation of the Catholic religion and the salvation of Christian peoples, with the approbation of the sacred Council, teach and explain that the dogma has been divinely revealed: that the Roman Pontiff, when he speaks ex cathedra, that is, when carrying out the duty of the pastor and teacher of all Christians by his supreme apostolic authority he defines a doctrine of faith or morals to be held by the universal Church, through the divine assistance promised him in blessed Peter, operates with that infallibility with which the divine Redeemer wished that His church be instructed in defining doctrine on faith and morals; and so such definitions of the Roman Pontiff from himself, but not from the consensus of the Church, are unalterable. But if anyone presumes to contradict this definition of Ours, which may God forbid: let him be anathema.
From Wikipedia:
The Catholic dogma of the primacy of the bishop of Rome is codified in both codes of canon law of the Catholic Church – the Latin Church’s 1983 Code of Canon Law (1983 CIC) and the Eastern Catholic Churches’ 1990 Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEO). The Second Vatican Council’s 1964 dogmatic constitution Lumen gentium (LG) declared that the “pope’s power of primacy” is by “virtue of his office, that is as Vicar of Christ and pastor of the whole Church,” and is “full, supreme and universal power over the Church” which he “is always free to exercise.” The primacy of the bishop of Rome, according to John Hardon in Catholic Dictionary, is “primacy of jurisdiction, which means the possession of full and supreme teaching, legislative, and sacerdotal powers in the Catholic Church”; it is authority “not only in faith and morals but Church discipline and in the government of the Church.”
In 1983 CIC canon 331, the “bishop of Roman Church” is both the “Vicar of Christ” and “pastor of the universal Church on earth.” Knut Walf, in New commentary on the Code of Canon Law, notes that this description, “bishop of the Roman Church,” is only found in this canon, and the term Roman pontiff is generally used in 1983 CIC. Ernest Caparros’ et al. Code of Canon Law Annotated comments that this canon pertains to all individuals and groups of faithful within the Latin Church, of all rites and hierarchical ranks, “not only in matters of faith and morals but also in all that concerns the discipline and government of the Church throughout the whole world.” Heinrich Denzinger, Peter Hünermann, et al. Enchiridion Symbolorum (DH) states that Christ did not form the Church as several distinct communities, but unified through full communion with the bishop of Rome and profession of the same faith with the bishop of Rome.
The bishop of Rome is a subject of supreme authority over the sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches. In CCEO canon 45, the bishop of Rome has “by virtue of his office” both “power over the entire Church” and “primacy of ordinary power over all the eparchies and groupings of them” within each of the Eastern Catholic Churches. Through the office “of the supreme pastor of the Church,” he is in communion with the other bishops and with the entire Church, and has the right to determines whether to exercise this authority either personally or collegially. This “primacy over the entire Church” includes primacy over Eastern Catholic patriarchs and eparchial bishops, over governance of institutes of consecrated life, and over judicial affairs.
Primacy of the bishop of Rome was also codified in the 1917 Code of Canon Law (1917 CIC) canons 218–221.
We see the title Vicar of Christ being used for the pope, where does it come from and what does it mean?
From Wikipedia we learn:
Vicar of Christ (from Latin Vicarius Christi) is a term used in different ways and with different theological connotations throughout history. The original notion of a vicar is as an “earthly representative of Christ”, but it’s also used in the sense of “person acting as parish priest in place of a real person.” The title is now used in Catholicism to refer to the bishops and more specifically was historically used to the Bishop of Rome (the pope).
However, the use of the title to refer to the popes in the early Church was unstable, and several variants of the use of Vicar were used for the Pope, as “Vicar of Peter”, indicating that they were the successors of St. Peter, “Vicar of the Prince of the Apostles” or “Vicar of the Apostolic See”, among other variants. This title is used by the Roman Missal in their prayers for a dead pope, and the oath of allegiance to St. Boniface to Pope Gregory II. Since 1200, Popes have consistently used this title, although Pope Francis recently moved this title to a different section of the 2021 Annuario Pontificio. Insisting that he — and he alone—had the right to remove bishops from office, Pope Innocent III appealed to the title of Vicar of Christ. Occasionally, Popes like Nicholas III used “Vicar of God” as an equivalent title The 2012 edition of the Annuario Pontificio gives “Vicar of Jesus Christ” as the second official title of the Pope (the first being “Bishop of Rome”).
From Tertullian’s Prescription Against Hereticks, chapter 28, we find the first known recorded use of the term Vicar of Christ: Let it be also granted that the Steward of God, the Representative, and Vicar of Christ shamefully neglected his Office…
Tertullian is referring to the Holy Spirit here, and the passage is pointing out the error in the beliefs of some early churches. He is saying that their false doctrines would seem to imply that the Holy Spirit had failed in the mission He was sent to accomplish.
Calling the Holy Spirit, who is God, a Representative and Vicar of Christ makes sense. So how did the church make the leap to calling the Bishop of Rome by the title that belongs to God?
We are NOT saying that the Roman Church considers the pope to be God, either officially or unofficially. However, the One who replaced Yeshua Messiah after He ascended to Heaven to take His seat at the right hand of YHWH was the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is the only substitute for Yeshua Messiah that will ever be on this earth.
The kings of Europe bowed down to the authority of the pope for over a millennia, and the world leaders still do today. The doctrine of the Roman Church is that the pope is incapable of making mistakes in judgment and therefore everything that he says is to be taken as the word of God. That is to say, then, that all the world must worship the pope, or in other words just as Daniel 11:36 says he shall do according to his will, and the king shall exalt and magnify himself against every god, and shall speak great swelling words.
Daniel 11:37 And he shall not regard any gods of his fathers nor the desire of women neither shall he regard any deity: for he shall magnify himself above all. (Septuagint)
We know that “his fathers” does not refer to his biological father, as that would not be plural, rather it refers to his forefathers, these were the first century apostles, and their God is YHWH Elohim. YHWH has said that no one can add to or take away from His Law, yet the pope disregards YHWH, the God of his fathers, by teaching that he has that authority.
Deuteronomy 12:32 All the things that I command you, take heed to do them, and you shall not add to it nor take away from it.
Galatians 3:15 Brothers, I speak according to man, a covenant having been ratified, even among mankind, no one sets aside or adds to it.
The Roman Church forbids the marrying of their clergy. The pope fits the description of a man who does not regard the desire of women; and as we’ve already seen, he magnifies himself above all.
Daniel 11:38 And he shall honor the god of forces on his place: and a god whom his fathers knew not he shall honor with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and desirable things. (Septuagint)
This verse is a continuation of the description of the development of the power and corruption of the Holy See.
god of forces
The Hebrew word translated here as ‘forces’ is Strong’s H4581מעוז ma’owz: a fortified place; figuratively, a defence: -force, fort(-ress), rock, strength(-en), strong(hold).
The office of the Holy See glorifies the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica. Peter means ‘rock’.
The Holy See has taught the church that rock and stone buildings are holy.
a god whom his fathers knew not he shall honor with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and desirable things
Once again it is said that the King of the North will not honour the God of his fathers. This makes him a false prophet by the definition in Deuteronomy 13, which is itself a prophecy of this figure and his death.
Deuteronomy 13:1-5 If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams rises among you, and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder which he foretold to you occurs, saying, Let us go after other gods which you have not known, and let us serve them, you shall not listen to the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams. For YHWH your God is testing you, to know if you love YHWH your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after YHWH your God, and you shall fear Him. And you shall keep His commandments, and you shall hear His voice, and you shall serve Him, and you shall cleave to Him. And that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has spoken apostasy against YHWH your God, who is bringing you out of the land of Egypt, and has redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to drive you out of the way in which YHWH your God has commanded you to walk. And you shall put away evil from among you.
The Holy See also glorifies false gods made of gold, silver, precious stones, wood, etc. in the form of their statues, paintings, and icons.
Jeremiah 16:20 Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods!
The Holy See is so wealthy that no one can calculate, or has ever calculated, its worth. No one could argue against the fact that the pope is surrounded by gold and silver, and with precious stones, and desirable things.
According to the National Post article from 8 March 2013, Wealth of Roman Catholic Church impossible to calculate:
It is impossible to calculate the wealth of the Roman Catholic Church. In truth, the church itself likely could not answer that question, even if it wished to. Its investments and spending are kept secret. Its real estate and art have not been properly evaluated, since the church would never sell them. There is no doubt, however, that between the church’s priceless art, land, gold and investments across the globe, it is one of the wealthiest institutions on Earth.
Daniel 11:39 And he shall do thus in the strong places of refuge with a strange god, and shall increase his glory: and he shall subject many to them, and shall distribute the land in gifts. (Septuagint)
The Papal States grew in their power and influence. The pope crowned and controlled kings and directed the paths of the European monarchies, using religion as a tool for controlling the people.
In 1870 the Papal States lost its land and status, and the British Empire became the new King of the North. Then, in 1948, the British Empire would eventually distribute the land of the Levant between the Muslim people (Transjordan) and the Jewish people (State of Israel).
Daniel 11:40-43 And at the end of the time he shall conflict with the king of the south: and the king of the north shall come against him with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and they shall enter into the land: and he shall break in pieces, and pass on: and he shall enter into the land of beauty, and many shall fail: but these will escape out of his hand, Edom, and Moab, and the chieftancy of the children of Ammon. And he shall stretch forth his hand over the land; and the land of Egypt shall not escape. And he shall have the mastery over the secret treasures of gold and silver, and over all the desirable possessions of Egypt, and of the Libyans and Ethiopians in their strongholds. (Septuagint)
Now, we see the King of the South show up again, after almost two thousand years. This passage is describing the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882, with the British Empire as the King of the North and Egypt as the King of the South.
The British naval fleet bombarded Alexandria, Egypt for four days in July of 1882, and then occupied the city with ground troops. Most of the city of Alexandria was destroyed, and in August, the British invaded Egypt with over 40,000 troops.
The result of the war was that the British Army lost 900 men and the Egyptians lost two thousand. British troops occupied Egypt for forty years, until the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence of 1922 and the Anglo-Egyptian treaty of 1936, began giving gradual control back to the government of Egypt. The final end of the British occupation was not until the 1954 Anglo-Egyptian evacuation agreement.
This passage also describes the British Empire taking over control of the Holy Land during the First World War. We read this description from Wikipedia:
Britain seized Palestine from the Ottoman Empire during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in World War I. Close cooperation between Britain and the Yishuv, the nascent pre-state Jewish community in Palestine, developed during this time, when Britain received intelligence from the Nili Jewish spy network, which assisted British forces in conquering Palestine. Additionally, over 5000 Jews from various countries served in the Jewish Legion of the British Army which fought at Gallipoli and in the Palestine Campaign, although some Palestinian Jews also served in the Ottoman Army. In 1917, Britain issued the pro-Zionist Balfour Declaration, which called for the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Six weeks afterward, British troops concluded the Palestine campaign, driving out the Ottoman army from Jerusalem, under the leadership of Field Marshal Allenby. The British then took control of Palestine. In 1920, Britain established its authority under the Mandate for Palestine granted by the League of Nations, which was confirmed in the San Remo Agreement of 1922. A High Commissioner was appointed with instructions to allow the Jews to build their national home, and spent 31 years in charge of British Mandate Palestine under a League of Nations mandate that originally extended to both sides of the Jordan River, although Transjordan was considered as a separate territory from Palestine by the British.
By United Kingdom Government signed by Arthur Balfour – British Library. Originally published 9 November 1917, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3940876
After the end of WWII, the British mandate was relinquished and the British pulled their troops out of the Holy Land. The establishment of the State of Israel was affirmed by a United Nations General Assembly resolution in 1948 and the Jews got their national home in the Holy Land.
Verse 44 of Daniel 11 is where we reach the modern time. The King of the North changed from the British Empire to the State of Israel in 1948, which is also the commencement of the Little Horn prophecies of Daniel 7 & 8.
In many ways the State of Israel can be seen as an extension or arm of the British and American Empires, but that is a rabbit hole for another time.
Daniel 8:8-9 Then the goat became exceedingly great, but when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four conspicuous horns toward the four winds of heaven. Out of one of them came a little horn, which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the glorious land.
The Little Horn came up out of one of the horns of the he-goat, the horn representing the British Empire, and the State of Israel came out of the British mandate via the UN General Assembly.
Daniel 7:7-8 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. 8 I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things.
The Little Horn comes up from among the ten horns of the fourth beast (American Empire). These horns are the ten nations listed in Psalm 83, and the State of Israel literally came up in the center of them. Daniel 7 also says that the Little Horn will pluck up by the roots three of the ten horns.
Daniel 7:19-22 Then I wanted to know the truth of the fourth beast, which was different from all of them, very frightening whose teeth were of iron and its nails copper; who devoured and crushed, and trampled what was left with its feet. And of the ten horns that were on its head, and the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and its look was greater than his fellow; I watched, and that horn made war with the saints and overcame them, until the Ancient of Days came. And judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
Daniel says that the Little Horn will make war with the saints and overcome them, until Yeshua Messiah returns and establishes His millennial kingdom.
The prophecy of Psalm 83 was fulfilled in AD 70 with the destruction of Jerusalem and all of Judea by the Roman armies. Note in the prophecy, the author is asking YHWH to save his people, but the text does not say that He saves them.
Psalm 83:1-8 O God, do not keep silence;
do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
2 For behold, your enemies make an uproar;
those who hate you have raised their heads.
3 They lay crafty plans against your people;
they consult together against your treasured ones.
4 They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation;
let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”
5 For they conspire with one accord;
against you they make a covenant—
6 the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,
7 Gebal and Ammon and Amalek,
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
8 Asshur also has joined them;
they are the strong arm of the children of Lot.
The origin of the legions led by Vespasian and Titus against the Jews is described in the early writings of Josephus and Tacitus. And we read a summary from Wikipedia:
In winter 69/70, Titus arrived from Alexandria and made Caesarea his main base. His forces included several legions, including V Macedonica, X Fretensis, and XV Apollinaris, along with XII Fulminata, which had suffered defeat in 66 CE. […] Additional troops came from detachments of the Legio III Cyrenaica and the Legio XXII Deiotariana from Egypt, twenty infantry cohortes, eight cavalry alae, Syrian irregulars, and auxiliaries supplied by allied vassal kings. According to Tacitus, “a strong force of Arabs”, driven by longstanding enmity toward the Jews, also joined the campaign. This combined force, estimated at a minimum of 48,200 soldiers, was significantly larger than the one deployed for the invasion of Britain in 43 CE.
These groups are from the regions listed in Psalm 83. The Legions listed were from Egypt (Amalek & the Hagarenes), Syria (Assur), and Arabia Petraea (Edom). The allied vassal kings from the area were from Syria (Assur), Galilee (Tyre & Gebal), Iturea (Ammon), Perea (Moab), Emesa (Tyre), and Idumaea (Edom & the Philistines). Tacitus reported “a strong force of Arabs”, which is the Ishmaelites.
These ten regions continue to exist today, under the names listed in the chart above. The Daniel 7 prophecy says that three of these regions will be “plucked up by the roots” by the Little Horn. We see this happening today. The State of Israel has decimated Gaza (Philistines), and Lebanon (Tyre & Gebal) is currently being destroyed. We are watching this prophecy play out before our eyes. The United States has permanent military bases in the other seven regions, but not in these three. However, the United States is about to begin building a 5000-person military base in Gaza, and there are likely plans for Lebanon as well.
On 19 May 2025, Britain, along with Canada and France, issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s “egregious” actions in Gaza. They warned of the possibility of further concrete actions” if Israel continued its military offensive and failed to lift restrictions on humanitarian aid. Netanyahu responded by saying that Britain, France and Canada were “guilty” of supporting Hamas.
More recently, the president of the State of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, has pulled the United States into a war with Iran, whom he believes (most likely correctly) is funding and supplying these two terrorist organizations. Iran is backed heavily by China and Russia.
Now that we have that foundational information about the current state of events in the Middle East covered, we can see how they align with the prophecy.
Daniel 11:44-45 But rumors and anxieties out of the east and from the north shall trouble him; and he shall come with great wrath to destroy many. And he shall pitch the tabernacle of his palace between the seas in the holy mountain of beauty: but he shall come to his portion, and there is none to deliver him. (Septuagint)
Rumors and anxieties out of the east and north are currently concerning the State of Israel and the United States, and they are destroying many with great wrath.
The Zionist Rothschild banking empire, along with the British Empire and the Freemasons all proudly proclaim their part in the creation of both the State of Israel and much earlier, the United States of America. The United States is also firmly entrenched in the Middle East. They have pitched their tent between the seas in the Holy Land, and YHWH will bring destruction on them and no one will be able to save them.
Daniel 12:1-4 And at that time Michael the great prince shall stand up, that stands over the children of your people: and there shall be a time of tribulation, such tribulation as has not been from the time that there was a nation on the earth until that time: at that time your people shall be delivered, even every one that is written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to reproach and everlasting shame. And the wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and some of the many righteous as the stars for ever and ever. And you, Daniel, close the words, and seal the book to the time of the end; until many are taught, and knowledge is increased. (Septuagint)
This passage belongs at the end of Chapter 11, as it is the grand finale of the prophetic King of the North timeline. We are going to break it down piece by piece.
And at that time Michael the great prince shall stand up
We read about this event in Revelation 12, it is the war in heaven between the armies of Michael and Satan.
Revelation 12:7-14 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” 13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
that stands over the children of your people
Daniel’s people are those who obey the commandments of YHWH and have faith in Yeshua Messiah.
Revelation 14:12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.
They are the woman in Revelation 12:14, was given the two wings of the great eagle to fly into the wilderness.
there shall be a time of tribulation
The time of tribulation is the period leading up to the Battle of Armageddon, when many will be martyred, right before the time of YHWH’s wrath. This tribulation will last three and a half years (a time, and times, and half a time) .
Zechariah 12:1-11 The oracle of the word of YHWH concerning Israel: Thus declares YHWH, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him: “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.
Zechariah 14:1-2 Behold, a day is coming for YHWH, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
at that time your people shall be delivered,
Yeshua will return for the faithful believers and take them to safety in the New Jerusalem that will come down from Heaven. This is the event called the rapture.
Revelation 12:14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
Yeshua will stand on the Mount of Olives and it will split in two, then He will destroy the armies of the nations at the Battle of Armageddon, and Michael will bind Satan and throw him in the pit where he will sit for a thousand years.
Zechariah 14:3-5 Then YHWH will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. And you shall flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. And you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then YHWH my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
Revelation 20:1-3 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
even every one that is written in the book.
The words book and scroll are the same in Hebrew, the book referred to in this prophecy is the Scroll of Life. Everyone written in the Scroll of Life will have eternal life in the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 20:11-15 And I saw a great white throne and the One sitting on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled; and a place was not found for them. And I saw the dead, the small and the great, standing before God. And scrolls were opened. And another Scroll was opened, which is the Scroll of Life. And the dead were judged out of the things written in the scrolls, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead in it. And death and Hades gave up the dead in them. And they were each judged according to their works. And death and Hades were thrown into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death. And if anyone was not found having been written in the Scroll of Life, he was thrown into the Lake of Fire.
Daniel, close the words, and seal the book to the time of the end
Yeshua tells Daniel to seal up the scroll he is writing because it is for the end-times.
Malachi 3:1-6 Behold, I am sending My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And YHWH whom you are seeking shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Angel of the Covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He comes, says YHWH of hosts. But who can endure the day of His coming? And who will stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap. And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them like gold and like silver, that they may be offerers of a food offering in righteousness to YHWH. Then the food offering of Judah and Jerusalem shall be pleasing to YHWH, as in the days of old, and as in former years. And I will come near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against those swearing to a lie; and against those who extort from the hired laborer’s pay; and turning away the widow, and the fatherless, and the alien, and not fearing Me. Says YHWH of hosts. For I am YHWH, I change not. Because of this you sons of Jacob are not destroyed.
Daniel 12:5-7 And I Daniel saw, and, behold, two others stood, on one side of the bank of the river, and the other on the other side of the bank of the river. And one said to the man clothed in linen, who was over the water of the river, When will be the end of the wonder which you have mentioned? And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was over the water of the river, and he lifted up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by him that lives forever, that it should be for a time of times and half a time: when the dispersion is ended they shall know all these things. (Septuagint)
This is where chapter twelve should have started, because it is no longer part of the prophecy; rather it is a discussion about the prophecy. The question is asked: How long until the end of these wonders? The answer: it shall be for a time, times, and a half, which is 3 ½ years. The same 3 1/2 years we read about in Revelation 12, which is the time of great tribulation BEFORE YHWH’s wrath is poured out on those who reject Him.
Daniel 12:8-13 And I heard, but I understood not: and I said, O Lord, what will be the end of these things? And he said, Go, Daniel: for the words are closed and sealed up to the time of the end. Many must be tested, and thoroughly whitened and tried with fire, and sanctified; but the transgressors shall transgress: and none of the transgressors shall understand; but the wise shall understand. And from the time of the removal of the perpetual sacrifice, when the abomination of desolation shall be set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waits, and comes to the thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. But go you, and rest; for there are yet days and seasons to the fulfillment of the end; and you shall stand in your lot at the end of the days.
Daniel doesn’t understand, which is in contrast to the beginning of the conversation with Yeshua in chapter 10, verse 1 when he says he understood the vision. So what changed?
In the beginning Daniel recognized the King of the North and King of the South as being Samaria and Jerusalem, or the House of Israel and the House of Judah. However, in chapter twelve he is confused by the timing given by the man on the river. He did not understand the: time, times, and a half. Yeshua tells him not to worry about it because he won’t be alive to see it happen because it is for the end-time. He reiterates that the righteous will be made white and the wicked will not understand even in the latter days. Yeshua tells him that the timing the man on the river meant will be 1290 days (3 1/2 years), and then adds a cryptic time frame of 1335 days.
Yeshua tells Daniel that he will wake to the second resurrection and final judgement after Yeshua’s thousand-year reign.
Habakkuk 2:3 For the vision is still for the appointed time, but it does not lie. Though it delays, wait for it; because it will surely come; it will not tarry.
Psalm 72:19 Blessed be his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and Amen!
Isaiah 6:3 And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is YHWH of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”
Isaiah 11:9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of YHWH as the waters cover the sea.
Habakkuk 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of YHWH as the waters cover the sea.
Jeremiah 31:34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know YHWH,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares YHWH. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
May you be blessed by this study. Shalom.